Description and phylogenetic relationships of two new species of Baripus (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Broscini) and considerations regarding patterns of speciation

SERGIO A. ROIG-JUÑENT, FEDERICO AGRAIN, RODOLFO CARRARA, EIDER RUIZ-MANZANOS & MARCELO F. TOGNELLI

Annals of Carnegie Museum

Carnegie Museum of Natural History

Año: 2008 vol. 77 p. 211 - 227

0097-4463

Baripus Dejean is a genus of the family Carabidae restricted to southern SouthAmerica. Three subgenera are recognized within the genus; one of them,Cardiophthalmus Curtis, is endemic to the Patagonian Steppe. Together with the membersof the genus Cnemalobus Guérin-Ménéville, these beetles are the largest Carabidae of thePatagonian Steppe. New studies in the northern region of Patagonia, the Payunia, revealthe presence of two new species Baripus (C.) nevado n. sp. and Baripus (C.) precordilleran. sp. restricted to an isolated montane habitats. In this paper, we provide a morphologicaldescription of the new taxa with illustrations of male and female genitalia. We also includephylogenetic analyses using all known species of Baripus. The cladistic analysis showedthat B. (C.) mendozensis, B. (C.) nevado and B. (C) precordillera constitutes amonophyletic group of species. These three species are allopatric, but B. (C.)mendozensis and B. (C.) nevado ranges are in close proximity. The distribution pattern,together with the phylogenetic pattern, suggests a possible peripatric pattern of speciation.We used a predictive model of species distribution to establish the present, past, andfuture distribution of B. (C.) mendozensis which is the most widely distributed species.Based on these analyses, we speculate that the current pattern of speciation may be aresult of climatic changes during the Pleistocene.